Impact & Learning Lead

TALBOT VILLAGE TRUST; England; Hybrid; GBP 40,000 - 55,000; Full time

Job summary

A prominent Dorset charity is looking for an Impact & Learning Lead to enhance the effectiveness of its grant programmes. This role involves designing impact strategies, facilitating learning processes, and ensuring evidence-informed decision-making. The ideal candidate will have strong analytical skills and experience in impact evaluation. The position is full-time, based in Bournemouth, with hybrid work options available. A commitment to community development and collaboration is essential.

Benefits

29 days’ holiday entitlement

Flexible working arrangements

Qualifications

• Experience of designing and leading impact inquiries.
• Strong analytical skills translating complex information into actionable insights.
• IT skills relevant for data sets used by charities.

Responsibilities

• Lead impact measurement and evaluation for funding.
• Coordinate the Trust’s impact and learning strategy.
• Produce insights and reports for decision-making.

Skills

Impact evaluation

Data analysis

Communication skills

Relationship building

Education

Experience in grant-giving environment

Tools

Data management systems

Job description

Are you passionate about making a difference in local communities, and helping a wide range of communities understand the difference they make? Are you rooted in impact measurement methodologies, and enthusiastic about bringing them to life with charities? Are you looking for a role that will stretch your skills?

Talbot Village Trust, one of Dorset’s largest grant giving charities, has an exciting opportunity for a new post of Impact & Learning Lead in our charity to support the design and delivery of impact measurement, both within our own organisation and with our grantees.

JOB DESCRIPTION

Job title: Impact & Learning Lead

Job purpose: To deepen the impact of the charity’s grant programmes for public benefit.

Reports to: Director of Giving

Contract: Full time

Location: Bournemouth, Dorset

Deadline: 30 January 2026.

BENEFITS

• 29 days’ holiday entitlement.
• Hybrid, flexible working arrangements.

JOB DESCRIPTION

Talbot Village Trust is one of Dorset’s largest place-based funders. Guided by the social purpose of our founders, we support people and communities across south-east Dorset to live well. Over the past decade, we have awarded more than £10 million through over 650 grants to charities and local impact organisations operating across Bournemouth, Poole, Christchurch, Purbeck, and East Dorset.

Alongside grant-making, we manage a diverse estate that includes the historic Talbot Village, residential and commercial lettings, woodland, and an urban heath.

We are now developing a long-term, evidence-informed approach to transform the Trust’s grant giving. As part of our strategic aims, we are extending a recent pilot Strategic Partnership programme, to enable the Trust to move from reactive grant giving to more sustainable, impactful grant giving that transforms the lives and opportunities for local communities in the longer term.

Our overarching ambition is to strengthen learning, insight, and impact, and this new role is central to achieving that goal.

JOB DESCRIPTION

Role Purpose

The Impact & Learning Lead will help us understand, deepen, and communicate the difference our funding makes. You will lead on impact measurement, evaluation, and organisational learning, ensuring decisions are evidence-informed and funding delivers the greatest possible benefit. You will have experience of social value measurement and of facilitating knowledge exchange to bridge grassroots action and strategic philanthropy.

This is a new and pivotal role within the Trust, offering the opportunity to shape our approach to learning from grant-making, support grantees, and enable more effective, preventative, place-based change.

Key responsibilities

Impact Strategy & Framework

• Coordinate the design, delivery and refinement of the Trust’s impact and learning strategy.
• Translate insights from the grant giving programmes and sector research to inform strategic recommendations to the Trust’s Board.
• Work with grantees to develop practical, sustainable impact frameworks, monitoring processes and data quality.
• Lead TVT’s own impact measurement initiatives, including the use of theory of change design and other relevant tools.

Supporting Grant-making & Engagement

• Promote our various grant programmes particularly to organisations addressing diverse community needs.
• Support the development of new initiatives and funding partnerships.
• Use data-driven approaches to identify and support high-need areas or groups.
• Contribute to events, stakeholder engagement and strategic reviews.
• Connect grantees with useful opportunities for networking, training and development.
• Support the Trust’s Philanthropy Committee and Board with evidence-based reporting.

Learning Culture & Facilitation

• Facilitate and contribute to internal and external learning processes, including reflection sessions, learning events, communities of practice, and peer learning.
• Promote a culture where insights – including failures – are openly shared and used to shape future decisions.
• Commission and manage external evaluations where appropriate.
• Translate complex evidence into accessible insights for trustees, staff, and partners.

Data, Systems & Reporting

• Produce high-quality insights, reports and presentations to inform decision making at all levels.
• Oversee data quality, monitoring and analysis, and the development of impact dashboards or summaries.
• Review and improve systems to capture, store and analyse impact data.
• Contribute to sector research networks (e.g., ACF, IVAR) to strengthen internal and sector-wide learning.

Stakeholder Relationships

• Prepare content, reports and other key communications targeting messages for diverse stakeholders at local, regional and national level.
• Contribute to internal and external communications and campaigns to highlight the impact of the Trust’s work.
• Maintain strong relationships with other funders, impact specialists, and statutory partners to share learning and improve sector support.
• Work collaboratively across Trust staff teams to deepen impact practices and communications.
• Represent the foundation in external networks, working groups or collaborations.

General

• Attend occasional events outside of office hours.
• Undertake any other duties reasonably required to support the charity’s activities.

PERSON SPECIFICATION

This role will suit someone who enjoys building trusted relationships and meaningful collaborations, investigating data, and reflective learning – someone who can translate complexity into meaningful action and enjoys convening others around learning. You don’t need to come from a traditional evaluation of grant giving background – many routes into learning and impact work are valued – but you will bring:

Essential

• Experience of designing and leading impact enquiries.
• Experience of co-designed approaches e.g. community engaged participatory research.
• Strong communication (written and verbal) and relationship building skills with a diverse range of partners and potential beneficiaries
• Strong analytical skills with the ability to translate complex information into actionable insights.
• IT skills and knowledge of key data sets used by charities/ public sector
• Self-organised, proactive, and collaborative approach.
• Understanding of charitable organisations and the impact of their work.
• Commercial awareness regarding organisational sustainability.
• Commitment to TVT’s mission, vision, and values.
• Clean, valid driving licence and access to a car. The role will involve site visits to communities across south-east Dorset.

Desirable

• Experience of working in a grant-giving environment.
• Experience of working with statutory partners
• Familiarity with place-based, community-led or systems-change work
• Understanding of UK charity law and governance.

How to apply

Please apply with a covering letter outlining why you are suitable for this role along with your CV including names of two referees (none of whom will be contacted without your consent and only if you are offered a position). Email your application via the button below.

As a small team, we are not able to provide individual feedback at the initial stage of the application process. Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.

This is a full time role, working 35 hours per week, Monday-Friday. We can offer the option to work from home on an agreed number of days per week once probation has been passed.

Deadline for applications is Friday 30th January 2026.

Please note that applications will not be monitored over the holiday period. However, we reserve the right to hold interviews for shortlisted candidates ahead of the closing deadline.

Should you be interviewed for this post (either virtual or face to face), you will always receive considered feedback from us once a decision has been reached.

Further information: http://www.TalbotVillageTrust.org